I’ve been keeping some notes on the process, but I feel like there is so much I’m leaving out, not on purpose but because I get into the ’empty trays, clean them, buy more food for them, wash them, reload them’ zone along with continuing to keep the house clean and fridge stocked with food for us to eat now.
We plan on hiking the PCT, the Pacific Crest Trail, which runs between Mexico and Canada through 2,500 miles of California, Oregon, and Washington. It can also be done going south, but we’ve chosen to go north for reasons Caleb can share with me later, as he has done a majority of the pre-trip planning to account for weather and us avoiding crampons. We will find out at the end of this month when we can start next spring.
As of today, we’ve had a freeze dryer (FD) since September 19th, so almost five weeks and I have learned a lot, but I am finding out I still have more information to gain, such as oxygen absorbers come in different cc’s of capability. I will be ordering more now that we are out of the 50 little packets that came with our 209-pound package (shipping weight), which we carried half of up a flight of stairs.
Our first few loads were simple fruits and veggies to learn how to load the trays and how long the process takes, averaging about 24 hours for simple items. We’re lucky that the FD comes with a book, and Caleb’s mom has had one for some time, so we had some guidance. You can not over-dry the food, so it’s best to choose extra dry time instead of bagging wet food or keeping it around for your friends to try (good for them, but it doesn’t help us on the trail).
I started out spacing the fruits and veggies with room for the Holy Spirit until I realized that you can pack meals on the tray (which will take more time in the FD), but some things will spread out or be sticky. Having the lids (ordered with silicone mats for less sticking and loss of food powder) with their “spacing ridges” makes it easier to portion meals, and then I put apples and protein brownie bites (and other snacks) on the trays because I can portion them out.
Freeze-dried foods are better nutritionally than dehydrated foods, which is why we went this route. We debated spending $8 to $11 per breakfast so that 150 meals each would cost roughly $1,200 to $1,650 (around 3k for both of us), and then we still need lunch/snacks, dinner, and desserts occasionally. This could easily bring our food cost to $7,200 to $9,900 just for meals and without drinks, which will consist of cocoa and coffee powders added to water.
Hikers don’t have to be rich to set out on long distances, and we will be doing this on a military retirement check, but we don’t want to live off Pop-Tarts and Ramen for over four months (apparently, we’ll be too old for that nonsense). I also don’t want to get stuck eating beef stroganoff because it was the only meal available in a trail store or hiker box.
Some hikers need to repackage food that they buy in town. We are packaging our own (with a balance of carbs, protein, and fats found in similar meals), so we need fewer boxes mailed to resupply stations (trail stores and local post offices) and can carry more food in a smaller space.
going in: cherries, raspberries, bell peppers, apples
Packaging our own food gives us more diversity in vegetables, flavors, and recipes (we’re hoping to have some friends help with this). It is surprising how many things can be freeze-dried, minus peanut butter by itself and other items that are too oily and will remain too moist for long-term storage. If properly done, these foods should last up to 30 years, but we only need them to survive for up to a year.
It will take about a month to make all the breakfasts, mostly granola and egg scramble, before we make the dinners. Our FD is on the floor, so it’s not the best for draining, but it’s also no issue when we were woken at 3 am to unload the trays and leave the FD to thaw with the door open. The other option is to heat the trays for two hours so that the thick ring of ice has an increased melt capacity. I’d say that after 30 minutes, you can break the seal with a butter knife (a guy posted a video using needle nose pliers).
The FD is too imposing on our counter, so it could drain into the sink, even though this is the most counter space we’ve had in the States. I prefer to use that space for loading trays, making coffee, keeping tea, and, if I’m lucky, a batch of homemade biscuits before I finish them within 24 hours.
I got woken again, this time at 4 am, with the FD beeping, and it can take up to an hour to measure the bag rolls (pre-cut sizes are awesome!) to the estimated size needed, seal one end, load them with food, add an oxygen absorber packet (while keeping them from sucking in all the oxygen in the kitchen), and vacuum seal them with a 15 seconds timer each (unless I have to re-flatten the bag end to get a better seal).
cooked breakfast scramble and fresh chickpea salad with apples
I do this for 12-15 meals and then either leave the trays by the sink (to get a nap) or wash them and set them to dry to reload as soon as all moisture has been removed from FD; otherwise, the oil pump will smoke aka puff oil vapors into the room (not so bad when the temperature and humidity allow for an open door to vent the space).
The rubber ring around the FD door (to aid in making a vacuum) will drip condensation, so we have a tea towel underneath. I was told the company Harvest Right used to sell something for that, but we just use the drain pan to catch ice pieces when we pull the chunks out. The ring has to come off, the tray rack comes out (so it can be wiped down if needed), and the interior chamber can be squeegee’d and wiped. I use a microfiber towel, so I don’t let tiny fibers get stuck in food or ice.
Our FD kit came with an impulse sealer, which provides an electrical pulse to seal poly and foil bags with candy or small tools and components. Hair ties and paint brushes don’t have the same shelf-life concern as our food. Other FD users (the videos I’ve watched) are also using jars (there’s an adapter) for long-term storage in their basement (heat can spoil things) or making tons of sweets to sell out at the farmer’s market/street fair/next vending opportunity.
For this reason, we bought a vacuum sealer and saved over $150 by not ordering the orange-button option. I was taking pictures of each load, but it’s difficult to get all five in the photo at a decent angle, so I won’t be posting all of them (but we all knew that). I need to come up with a new way to track how many batches are done so I can replace the vacuum pump oil every 20 to 30 uses for proper maintenance.
I wrote about our 2023 December trip to the Tampa area. We came back for nine days in March to find a place to live within a one-hour commute from Caleb’s transitional position into the civilian sector at Cummins Inc. We were supposed to move into our new place on April 12th, but the carpet had to be replaced, which took the weekend. We were able to stay at a friend’s place and got a discount on the rent. Then, the moving company we hired showed up two hours late, after we’d moved half the 16-ft truck up a flight of stairs, and still demanded to be paid in full.
Harbor Palms Nature Park
Caleb unpacks boxes and puts their contents in cabinets… some things are still missing. We keep busy with spring fests, local parks, clubhouse events, making new friends, and going diving. Caleb had to take two months off work (from the Navy) before starting his new job. We had to go somewhere… that’s where Ireland comes in for ten days in May. We explore museum deals, live music venues, and visit a long-time friend before we go to San Diego for a week in June. We leave directly from the hotel to drive up to Washington, where we will join Caleb’s Uncle Ed on a cross-country trip.
Hillsborough River State ParkJohn Chestnut Park
We will visit 25 states in two weeks, which was enough time to stay a night at Jessi’s (Caleb’s sister) in Montana, visit his mom, Terri, at work, stay a night at Kris’s (Caleb’s brother) in Wisconsin, and a half day at Niagara Falls with Ed’s old friend Mark. Maine would mark the goal of this trip, and then we skipped more stops the closer we got to our new place so we could rest over the holiday weekend. Caleb started work on Monday morning before I got out of bed (before the sun did too!) He agreed to work four days at ten hours each for four months.
Brooker Creeksunset over the pool
August and September are spent with friends — in their pool, at the park, at restaurants, paddle boarding, celebrating my birthday, and at a women’s expo. We go diving, donate blood, replace the mirror motor on the car, shop for some necessary trail supplies, and buy a freeze-dryer (so we can make our meals for the PCT we’re planning to hike in 2025). My friend, Farid, came to visit from New York City for five days, and we spent them cooking and beaching it up when we weren’t in the hot tub. The tide wasn’t always in our favor, but it was a great time. Though I love my alone time, I also enjoy house guests.
Madeira Beach
Now, we’re in October, and I just received my first emergency evacuation. I didn’t heed the order to leave. I filled up camelbacks as a water supply, and Caleb grabbed our highlighter suits from the garage so we could walk around for live storm updates. The water in the pond went up, we went to bed after 10pm with high winds and blue lightning, and woke to a beautiful morning — no traffic stress, no worry about gas, no getting in the way of those who needed to get out because their homes were already damaged less than two weeks ago. People outside the state were more concerned for my safety, and I’m grateful for their consideration in this situation.
banana, pear, apple, mango, mixed veg, bell peppers
Thanks to I Love the Burg for sharing things to eat and places to visit in St. Petersburg. I came across a free entry day (otherwise $48 for us) for FloridaRAMA: Immersive Art Experience from 12 to 5 pm, with the help of a sponsor. They feature over 75 local and international artists celebrating Florida. We definitely didn’t spend five hours there, and initially I was glad we got in for free, but I understand that making and transporting art comes at a cost, even if I didn’t come prepared to take multiple selfies with each installation.
I’m not done taking pictures, though. We will drive the few miles to Boyd Hill Nature Preserve and pay the $3 each to walk along their six miles of trails through hardwood hammocks, freshwater swamps, and upland scrub. They have boardwalks and birds, and baby alligators near the water’s edge. We see a raccoon and a gopher tortoise along with a larger-than-life metallic armadillo. Being in nature is always a great way to spend the day and I’m glad that I feel more relaxed around trees than I do in a giant shrimp cocktail disco room.
Ireland’s economy boomed between 1995 and 2007, growing at over 9% each year. This drew the attention of a reporter, as Ireland had previously been one of Europe’s poorest countries. The title, Celtic Tiger, was referring to the Four Asian Tigers (Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan), but soon, the nickname caught on and is still used occasionally as the island’s economy is still doing well.
We left the house before 6 am, dropped off the rental car (which was faster and easier than picking it up), and grabbed the shuttle back to the airport. We had to wait twice for separate pairs of glass doors to be unlocked from the other side once the crew got the ok. While we waited, we met two other couples (one reminding me of Grumpy Old Men, but in love) who also drove (one from Michigan or Minnesota and the other couple from the Tri-state area).
Once seated, the couple behind us is from Tampa. The passengers are brought snacks, drinks, and a meal (all the food being white/tan in color) in quick succession so that many can sleep through the flight. I will use this time to try the Tayto (The Original Irish crisp) salt & vinegar chips and Keogh’s (Grown with love in Ireland) shamrock and sour cream chips, which are yummy!
I was still up reading about Sue on the Appalachian Trail with two hours of flight time to go, so I went to the back to get another drink and snack. The crew brings around ‘sandwiches’ (pita pizza pocket) an hour later. We’re deplaning, and I get the opportunity to see a man with a metal ball for an eye. If I had more time, I perhaps would’ve asked him questions that others deemed inappropriate.
over the US
We land in New Jersey, and I eat a salad (mostly a post about food consumed over international waters rather than anything to do with Ireland), and on the next flight, I see a woman sneaking Cheez-Its under her sweater with her sunglasses on. If I get the chance to return to Ireland, I would want to see the northern half and then come back for a lighthouse tour.
I debated posting this, as there’s not much here, but I wanted to complete the ten nicknames for Ireland and mention the crisps, of which there are so many flavors available online. The flights were about half the cost of this trip, and we have a road trip planned for next month as we enjoy the last few months of Caleb being on active duty with a consistent paycheck every two weeks.
Growing up, I always wished to get away. I found someone I could staycation or escape with and who would help fund my long periods of unemployment. I have worked roughly eight years in the last 21 and some of that time was unpaid. Once Caleb retires, I still hope to get an annual cancellation in our passports, and I know that may require some earnings on my part.
TheJessicaness 